Short-Term and Vacation Rental license changes

In two separate split-decision votes at their Jan. 9 meeting, Boulder County Commissioners approved sweeping changes to the Boulder County Land Use Code and Boulder County Licensing Ordinance 2023-02 regarding regulation of Short-Term and Vacation Rentals in unincorporated Boulder County.

The complexity of the issues and passion of public opinion were once again on full display at the Jan. 9 meeting which lasted eight hours, including nearly four hours of public testimony both in favor of and opposed to the proposed changes. On the two votes, commissioners Ashley Stolzmann and Marta Loachamin voted to approve amended changes to the County Planning and Permitting (CPP) staff’s draft proposals for the new regulations. Commission Claire Levy stood alone in opposition to both.

The changes will only impact Boulder County’s unincorporated areas, which include the rural, mountain and plains communities, such as Niwot and Gunbarrel, and not incorporated cities like Boulder and Longmont.

“I know not any member -- commissioners included, planning commissioners included -- got each thing exactly the way they would have done it,” Commissioner Stolzmann admitted. “But there's been a lot of really good input and work together and collaboration to improve upon what we had. I think the process is much more equitable. We talked a lot about ensuring that regardless of who walks in the door, that they have access and that there's a fair process and I think we have accomplished that. There will be more certainty for all parties involved and things will be more equal and predictable.”

Commissioner Loachamin added in support of the changes, “This is complicated. It’s very complex, trying to find the balance between all of the different pieces -- our codes, our goals, the objectives, supporting the local economy, taking care of residents.

“Not everybody is going to be happy. But what I do feel like we've accomplished is clarity, reduction of process and hopefully moving forward in a way that's going to really acknowledge the work that everybody is doing to get us to a better place. We move forward in the application process and potentially reduce the time that folks had to wait to get in front of the Board of Commissioners.” Applicants were previously required to go before the county commissioners to obtain approval. That requirement is eliminated under the new rules.

The county commissioners’ original directive to the CPP staff following a presentation of the staff review of the existing regulations last updated in 2020, included evaluating ways to create more certainty for applicants looking to engage in short-term rentals, to streamline the application and review process, and to reduce redundancies and discretion within the current land use review and licensing process.

For Commission Levy, the changes were too vast and exceeded what she believed were the initial goals of the two-year review process.

“I say this very reluctantly,” Levy said just prior to the actual votes. “I am going to be a no vote because I do feel that we are taking our whole vacation rental and short-term rental opportunity in a direction that is not a direction I think we should be going. I think we're basically, just to sum it up, taking it beyond the limited circumstances of where we started this and really opening it up to a much more prevalent use in Boulder County.”

Under the new regulations, the number of rental types is reduced from three to two -- Short-Term Rentals and Vacation Rentals.

The new Short-Term Rental definition changes the owner-occupancy guidelines to establish one standard where the dwelling unit is the primary residence of either the owner or tenant (who occupies the dwelling for more than 30 days) and the owner or tenant is present during the duration of the short-term rental period (fewer than 30 days). There would be an exception for up to 45 nights per year that the owner or tenant would not be required to be present during the rental period. Proof of residency is eased under the new guidelines to presenting a Colorado state-issued driver’s license or identification card along with a sworn Statement of Primary Residence, which affirms that the person lives in the dwelling at least six months out of each calendar year.

The new definition of a Vacation Rental is “a single-family dwelling unit that offers transient lodging accommodations to a single booking party at a time within that dwelling unit for a rental duration of fewer than 30 days where the entire unit is solely occupied by the rental party during the duration of the rental period.” Approved Vacation Rentals could be rented for up to 365 days per year, another issue Commissioner Levy opposed, stating she preferred a maximum number of days rented closer to 180.

Under the new regulations, an individual or legal entity will be permitted to hold one of each of the two types of licenses. Previously, only one license of any type was allowed for an individual or legal entity.

Other changes for Vacation Rentals include requiring a two-night minimum stay to reduce turnover and neighborhood impact; changing parking requirements to two on-site spaces, or one space per every four approved occupants, whichever is fewer; and only allowing Vacation Rentals in Forestry and Mountain Institutional zoning districts, which are all found in the Upper St. Vrain and Bald Mountain Census County Divisions (CCDs), and only in unsubdivided areas.

This last change precludes vacation rental licenses from being permitted in the unincorporated Plains area of the county, which is comprised of the remaining Boulder, Longmont and Lafayette/Louisville CCDs -- effectively all areas of the county east of the mountains.

The new regulation also eliminates the third short-term rental type previously defined in the Land Use Code as Secondary Dwelling Short-Term Rentals. This category was defined as “a single-family dwelling unit offering transient lodging accommodations to a single booking party at a time within that dwelling unit for a rental duration of fewer than 30 days where the dwelling unit is not the primary residence of the owner, is rented 60 days per year or less.” The category was originally included to allow the traditional rental of seasonal cabins in the mountains that may not be the owners’ primary home.

While this category has been eliminated going forward, individuals or legal entities that hold current Secondary Dwelling licenses will be allowed to continue using these licenses in a “non-conforming use” as long as they adhere to the previous licensing guidelines.

According to county records, currently there are two houses licensed for short-term rentals in Cottonwood Park West, one in Somerset, one near 95th Street and Highway 52, and one behind the fire station on Niwot Road. One home on Niwot Road west of 63rd Street is also licensed, and two more nearby are under review.

Two homes in Gunbarrel Estates are also licensed, as well as one in Homestead, three in

Heatherwood, four in Twin Lakes, one in the Willows, and one in South Meadow Park with an additional home there under review.

Another major change to the CPP staff draft proposal approved by the County Commissioners was increasing the number of licenses for Vacation Rentals from a 3.5% cap to 4% of total housing units within the Upper St. Vrain CCD and the Bald Mountain CCD combined. Under the 4% cap, the number of Vacation Rental licenses permitted will be 194 in St. Vrain and 83 in Bald Mountain, despite the latter having considerably more total housing units (1380 vs. 5530).

The commissioners approved the CCP staff proposal of allotting more licenses in the Upper St. Vrain because 55.7% of the existing housing stock in that area is classified as “for seasonal, recreational, or occasional use” as opposed to just 11% in the Bald Mountain CCD. Because of that difference, the staff believed St. Vrain to be more appropriate for Vacation Rental usage.

Commissioner Levy voiced her opposition to the use of any cap system as the most effective and equitable way to limit the number of Vacation Rental licenses and the geographical distribution of the licensed properties.

“I think it is arbitrary,” Levy explained. “It just sorts out some who can, and some who can't (obtain these licenses), based only on a point in time when they happen to be ready to do it. Nor does it really ensure that we're distributing these so that they aren't too intensive against any one mountain area because you could potentially have all of the Upper St. Vrain CCD Vacation Rental licenses concentrated in one area. I don't think it accomplishes what we wanted to accomplish. So, I don't support caps at all.”

The commissioners also approved a change to the previous licensing ordinance that will require that at the time of application, prospective Vacation Rental licensees will need to notify all owners of adjacent property of the request.